The year 2002 was a rich one in so many ways, not least in the stampede by fools looking for a microphone. Dexter intends to reward just one of these judgement-impaired persons with the Coveted Equine Derriere Award. Readers of this blog will note the good work done by David Ahenakew in surpassing many minor contenders when he recently made his self-immolating remarks on the wisdom of Hitler's policies toward ethnic minorities. But competition is the life-blood of any society and this respected leader of Canada's First Immigrants has plenty.
Let us take as an example Senator Patty Murray of Washington who recently found time to heap praise upon a certain Mr Osama Bin Laden, social critic of no fixed abode. Mr O has become a popular figure in the Middle East, according to Senator Murray, because of his natural tendency to generosity. This worthy gentleman has been "for decades building schools, building roads, building infrastructure, building day-care facilities, building health care facilities, and the people are extremely grateful." This, quoth Senator Patty, is in stark contrast to what the United States has been up to and American prestige has suffered as a result. She then went on to suggest the United States could have been viewed differently if it had done some of the same things. "How would they look at us today if we had been there helping them with some of that rather than just being the people who are going to bomb Iraq and go to Afghanistan?" she asked her audience of high school students.
Americans are normally an easy-going people and Senator Murray must have been puzzled to learn that mean-mouthing her country while praising one of its most murderous enemies, in front of school children, could arouse a good deal of hostile comment. Undaunted the plucky daughter of a disabled veteran defended her remarks, expressing disbelief that anyone could find her speech to be more than a just a playful spur to a spirited high school debate.
In all the opprobrium that has been heaped on the head of this low-wattage legislatotrix, no one has asked the following question: how can she be so ignorant of the vast sums that the United States spends on foreign aid and nation-building in the Third World? A look at the U.S. budget reveals billions of dollars aimed at humanitarian assistance and disaster-relief, debt-reduction, development aid and food aid. Americans help to pay for medical care, infrastructure, long-term economic growth, internal security, AIDS prevention, loans to local business, child development, etc., etc., etc. Despite this outflow of wealth, America remains unpopular in some parts of the globe and Senator Murray remains clueless. How clueless? Among her legislative duties Patty sits on the Budget Committee.
Posted by at December 23, 2002 09:11 PM